US State Department spokesperson Vedant Patel has said that the US is regularly working with India in the context of investigating allegations of a conspiracy to assassinate Sikh separatist leader Gurpatwant Singh Pannu. The US spokesperson made the above comments after The Washington Post, quoting unnamed sources, named a former officer of India’s intelligence agency RO in the conspiracy to murder Pannu.
However, India on Tuesday rejected Washington Post’s claim outright. India said that the Washington Post report has made unfair and baseless allegations on a serious issue. External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said a high-level inquiry committee has been constituted by New Delhi to investigate the inputs given by the US regarding the alleged conspiracy. Speculation or irresponsible comments on the matter will not help the investigation. Addressing his daily press conference on Tuesday, Vedant Patel said, ‘We expect accountability from the Indian government based on the results of the work of the Indian investigating committee. We regularly work with India on this issue and also seek updates.
Concerns will continue to be raised at senior level: America
In response to a question, Vedant Patel said, ‘We will continue to raise this issue with the Government of India at senior levels. I will not discuss this issue further. I will leave this issue to the Justice Department.’The Washington Post report mentions Vikram Yadav’s name as a former officer of India’s intelligence agency RO. It is alleged that he had a role in the conspiracy to murder Pannu. Vikram Yadav had appointed a team to plot an attack on Khalistan terrorist Gurpatwant Singh Pannu on American soil.
